Georgy Kalatozishvili, Tbilisi. Exclusively to VK
Georgia is shocked by the tragedy happened in Tbilisi: during a rope-jumping contest 23-year-old Mariam Kandashvili and 25-year-old Goga Goletiani fell to death. Rope-jumping is an extreme sport. It became popular among Tbilisi young people as romantic: young people jump from the roof of the university being bound by one rope. Sometimes a joint jumping precedes wedding.
Goga was a fan of jumping and was considered to be a “veteran” of this kind of sport. He spent many time communicating with his beloved Mariam through Facebook. She admired the guy who wasn’t afraid to jump into the abyss from 100 meters. Goga proposed her to jump together. It was so natural and romantic: jumping into the abyss as a lover vow. Mariam agreed because she trusted Goga. He was sure nothing bad would happen: jumping was organized by experienced sportsmen from Extreme Team headed by the well-known climber Bidzina Gudzhabidze.
It is unknown what has happened that doomed day. Observers say that everything was “as always”: climbers fixed main and safety ropes, turned on brake equipment. Yong people held each other and jumped to huge stones of a dry channel... The climbing rope suddenly broke. The girl died immediately, the guy – in several hours at hospital.
It is strange that jumping carried out above open stones rather than water. In the West where the sport was born jumping is undertaken above water because there is a chance to survive if the rope breaks.
But why did it break? The climbing rope of Miriam and Goga, according to experts, should bear 5 tons. Safety ropes and brake straps. Bidzina Gudzhabidze stated that he was ready to bear the whole responsibility. He was examined in the police and signed the recognizance not to leave before the investigation is ended.
Relatives and friends of died young people do not blame those who organized jumping. They know that guys wanted to jump eagerly. And rope-jumping is not a forbidden kind of activity. It seems the doom didn’t let them to play with their fate. Who is to blame? Should jumping popular among Tbilisi young people be forbidden? But why don’t we forbid mountain climbing? It is also a very dangerous kind of sport. There is no simple answer. Fate knows no sympathy. However, we are so sorry for two beautiful young people who naively believed in infinity of life and love.
